Info on 1989 Thompson Bowrider

[erock35]

Does anyone know anything about Thompson boats? I'm looking to purchase a 1989 Thompson 18 ft ski boat
Engine : 1989 Mercruiser Alpha One 3.0 L 4 cylinder 130 HP outdrive

Owner says the boat and trailer are in great shape. He says the starter or alternator is bad and right now the engine is dead. He ran it last summer and says it ran good but the points kept burning up. I read somewhere that if you leave the key switch on and the engine is not running,power is still sent to the points and will burn them up. He said outdrive is great,propeller is new, boat, floor and trailer are great condition
He was using the boat a year back, until he used to get stuck in the middle of the lake! [due to points/ignition issues].

Anyway I've talked him down to $700 bucks already and haven't even seen the boat other than the pics on Craigslists

Does anyone know anything about these boats?

 

[Topol_86]

Re: Info on 1989 Thompson Bowrider

With a fully charged battery, the alternator won't come into play until after the boat is running. If the boat starts, then the starter is not the problem. Reasons for the boat dying would be the alternator isn't producing power to maintain the engine requirements, and in turn, runs off the battery until it's drained. If he was able to make it to the middle of the lake before the engine died, I'd lean more towards an alternator issue. For $700 it's not a bad deal by any means, and you can simply take the alternator off and take it to any autoparts store and have it tested, usually for free.

 

[erock35]

Re: Info on 1989 Thompson Bowrider

ok, but what about the points and ignition issue? Could the engine be damaged from constantly burning points? I have an extra alternator and starter so I'm not worried about that. I'm worried about the ignition and if timing is off or if something major could be wrong. What do ya think? Thanks for your help.

 

[ezmobee]

Re: Info on 1989 Thompson Bowrider

Hopefully the extra alt and starter you have are marine units......

 

[This_lil_fishy]

Re: Info on 1989 Thompson Bowrider

Not uncommon for the points/coil/distributor to go up in smoke if left on when not running...well on some systems. Our old fork lift at the shop does this every time we leave the key on when it's not running. That said, I don't think it's that common on boats, others would know better.

Edit: this will only happen when the points are contacted and there is still voltage going to the coil. If the engine is off, and the contact is open, then it usually is fine, although we did burn up a condensor once too.

ian

 

[erock35]

Re: Info on 1989 Thompson Bowrider

Actually I have another complete 3.0l mercruiser with a cracked block that I got off of a buddy. So,yes, they are marine parts. That's why i'm seriously thinking about buying this boat. Just wandering what kind of rep Thompson Boats have. Maybe , it's just a simple condenser that is bad and would be a cheap fix. Could constant ignition problems like that hurt the engine? The owner said he kept burning up points and replacing. It happened enuff to where he just parked the boat

 

[This_lil_fishy]

Re: Info on 1989 Thompson Bowrider

Nope, just won't start again. Now that could shorten the life of the starter though. Shouldn't harm the engine itself though.

 

[windsors03cobra]

Re: Info on 1989 Thompson Bowrider

I dont know if points will burn up if open but I was always told if you leave the key one your gonna burn up the points. I've burned a set or 2 myself stalling an engine and accidentally leaving the ignition on.
The nice thing about point ignition is the ease of troubleshooting and repair, all so simple and basic. In the era of a computer board in every dang thing points are kind of a nice change of pace.

I think Thompson Boats were built in Peshtigo WI, Ive never used one but store 1 or 2 and they seem like a well built boat.

 

[erock35]

Re: Info on 1989 Thompson Bowrider

Thanks, windsor03cobra. First one to comment on Thompson boats.
Here are some pics of the boat I can get for $700.
http://i800.photobucket.com/albums/yy286/erock35/thompson3.jpg
http://i800.photobucket.com/albums/yy286/erock35/Thompson1.jpg
http://i800.photobucket.com/albums/yy286/erock35/thompson2.jpg

 

[stylesabu]

Re: Info on 1989 Thompson Bowrider

HEI,high energy ing replace distributor with auto type. electronic no points to burn. may have to recurve for boat applications. but way to go

 

[erock35]

Re: Info on 1989 Thompson Bowrider

Yea , that's what I was thinking. Buy this boat and get rid of the points for good and go with the electronic ignition. But I've heard good about both. whatever is causing the points to burn could possible destroy the new electric ignition. May just take a gamble and snatch up this boat. Hell, the trailor is almost worth it.

 

[windsors03cobra]

Re: Info on 1989 Thompson Bowrider

I just searched for Thompson Boats on google and did not find out a whole lot but there is a wikipedia page for them (which I always love, wiki)

Small world, like my ancestors they came to Racine WI from Demark.
The family came from Denmark and settled at Racine, Wisconsin. About 1899 they moved to undeveloped farmland near Peshtigo.
Sadly.
Thompson Boat at Peshtigo went bankrupt and closed in 1980. A Thompson dealer in the Detroit area bought the assets from the bankruptcy court and the entire operation was moved from Peshtigo to St. Charles, MI that year. 76 years of boat building tradition at Peshtigo came to an end.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thompson_Boat

 

[windsors03cobra]

Re: Info on 1989 Thompson Bowrider

An ignition coil designed to be used with a ballast resistor but not using one may burn the points, cook the condenser, explode the coil.
I know many will disagree but $700 is about what that boat would sell for here the way its sitting. A good set of points is fifteen dollars.

 

[erock35]

Re: Info on 1989 Thompson Bowrider

Thanks Windsor03cobra for all the info. I will check it out tommorow and make my decision. Right now my wife is calling me to bed. Gotta get up in 6 hours. goodnight guys . Really appreciate all your help. I will post the turnout! Thanks

 

[osborn159]

Re: Info on 1989 Thompson Bowrider

imho, if your paying for this boat, you should be able to hear it run, i wont buy anything that wont run even if it runs bad at least i know what im workin with, you may pay $700 for something you wind up throwing money at and not have anything more than a parts boat and a trailer, if it wont run and your hooked on it offer him half that in my opinion, mine may be different, boats all over round here some for take it away with title.

 

[Utahboatnut]

Re: Info on 1989 Thompson Bowrider

Was Merc still using points in 1989? That seems pretty new to still have a points system in it. I was just curious after reading this thread. Even if it is if you have a complete parts engine to draw from just switch everything over and see if you can get it to run. Or switch over to elec. ignition and be done with it. I finally did it on my sandrail that had a points system on it, it now runs and starts much better than it ever did before.

 

[This_lil_fishy]

Re: Info on 1989 Thompson Bowrider

We changed the rotor to the electronic style a while back...cooked it too. A full conversion to an electronic ignition system would do the trick..maybe off a cracked block or engine that hasn't been winterized. Pull everything (wiring loom and all) and have at it!

Ian

 

[JimS123]

Re: Info on 1989 Thompson Bowrider

Thompson was one of the premier wooden boat builders. Their lapstrake hulls were among the best. However, they were never successful in making the switch to fiberglass. They continued making the lapstrake style hull while theit competitors went to more modern designs.

My recollections were that the early 1970's Thompsons were not too good. I had a neigbor that bought one and he had a lot of problems with gel coat cracking and leaks. We had 2 dealers in my area, so there were a lot of them in use back then. After they went through bankruptcy in 1980, our local dealers switched brands, so I never saw a newer one.

You rarely see one anymore, of course there aren't many other 30 year old boats that survived either.

 

[erock35]

Re: Info on 1989 Thompson Bowrider

WEll Guys , I bought the Thompson boat and trailor for $500. Just so happens, my buddy has a 17ft Dixie with no motor or outdrive. We're in the process of removing Engine and outdrive from the Thompson and putting it in the Dixie. It's the same exact engine and drive that was on the Dixie. Put Some Juice to that engine today and it spun over so the starter was good. Getting fuel but no spark. Of coarse, don't know if timing or points are set correctly.Will work on this issue this week. Maybe fool around with points or maybe just try new electronic ignition. Thanks for all the comments and advice here in this forum. Kudos to this site and you guys. Hopefully I'll have this boat up and running soon.